Good day. Here are the top stories of The Manila Times for Monday, Nov. 21, 2022.
READ: Marcos, Harris tackle Taiwan
PRESIDENT Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. will continue discussing "the Taiwan" issue and other security concerns with United States Vice President Kamala Harris when they meet today, November 21, in Malacañang. The Chief Executive will welcome the second highest elected US official and her entourage at the Palace in her first ever visit to the Philippines. One issue both leaders are expected to tackle is the "Taiwan situation" as well as other security issues in the Asia-Pacific region which Marcos says merits a "joint response." Tension is brewing between the US and China over the latter's insistence to put the self-governed island of Taiwan under its control. Beijing has been accusing Washington of meddling with its affairs and encouraging Taiwan to assert independence. Marcos in the past had called for all parties "to exercise maximum restraint" and said that "dialogue and diplomacy must prevail" to arrive at a peaceful resolution to the issue. The President in the last Asean Summit affirmed that the Philippine government recognizes the One China policy but that China and Taiwan must "resolve those issues peacefully" to avert a violent confrontation.
READ: Better response to climate issues seen
PRESIDENT Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. believes climate change mitigation measures are "to be felt more" globally following the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit that just wrapped up in Bangkok, Thailand. According to him, it is "very encouraging to see" that member economies "seem to have a great deal of commonality" in addressing problems that the world is facing. Apart from climate change, the world has other issues that should be prioritized such as food security, clean energy and post-pandemic economic recovery efforts. He further noted that leaders of APEC countries, as well as guest participants, acknowledged that while there are policies in place to address the global issue, little has actually been done to slow down the effects of climate change, an "overarching" concern throughout the gathering.
READ: Haribon chief decries deforestation
ENVIRONMENT group Haribon Foundation Chief Operating Officer Anna Varona said that at least 7,517 deforestation alerts were recorded in a span of two weeks as illegal logging activities persist in the country. Appearing in SMNI's "Business and Politics" program hosted by The Manila Times Chairman and CEO Dante "Klink" Ang 2nd, Varona cited the data from the Global Forest which showed that between Nov. 6 and Nov. 13, 2022, at least 7,517 deforestation warnings covering at least 92 hectares were recorded. In an earlier interview with The Manila Times, Environment Undersecretary Jonas Leones said that the DENR has not issued any logging concessions. Varona admitted that there are very few DENR personnel to protect the country's forests. She also blamed poverty as the root cause of the illegal logging activities.
READ: Road crashes kill 1,670 children yearly
ROAD crashes kill at least 1,670 Filipino children every year across the country, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed. Public Interest law group ImagineLaw, the United Nations Children's Fund and youth groups on Sunday said the number is very alarming, considering that the figure only refers to children and young people 0-19 years old. Angelito Umali of Unicef said that it is the right of children to be protected, particularly those of school age or 5-19 years old. He added that globally, 219,000 children die on the roads yearly or 600 every day. ImagineLaw said that road safety is the responsibility of everyone, from parents, government, community leaders, teachers to road users. Transportation Undersecretary Mark Steven Pastor and Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chief Romando Artes affirmed their support for the group's advocacy and campaign on road safety.
In Business
READ: Interest rate hike to continue
MONETARY authorities will cap this year with another interest rate hike, analysts said, likely a 50-basis-point (bps) adjustment that will raise the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' (BSP) policy rate to 5.5 percent. Last Friday, BSP Governor Felipe Medalla declared that the central bank's policymaking Monetary Board (MB) would continue to respond to US Federal Reserve (Fed) decisions, telling Reuters that "if the Fed does 50 [bps], we cannot have zero, right? So the question is whether it's 25 or 50." The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will hold its final meeting for the year on December 13 to 14, during which a summary of economic projections will also be released. The outcome is expected to indicate how much further US monetary tightening will continue. The MB, meanwhile, will hold its own policy meeting on December 15. The MB ordered a 75 bps increase during its last meeting on November 17, matching the adjustment announced by the Fed on November 4.
Topping Sports
READ: Blue Eagles secure playoff for F4 berth
ATENEO de Manila University turned back Far Eastern University (FEU), 75-71, to secure a playoff for a Final Four berth on Sunday in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 85 men's basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena. Angelo Kouame logged 20 points, 14 rebounds, three assists, and one block to lead the way for the Blue Eagles, who battled back from 18 points down to rise to an 8-3 slate, tied with National University in second place at press time. Forth Padrigao also came through with 13 points, six assists, and five rebounds, as Dave Ildefonso chipped in eight markers and nine boards. Bryan Andrade and Matthew Garcia added nine and eight points, respectively, for Ateneo, which limited the Tamaraws to just 24 points all the while scoring 44 of their own in the second half. Xyrus Torres got 19 points to pace the Tamaraws, who suffered their third straight loss to fall to 4-8 and hurt its semifinal chances.
READ: McIlroy, Fitzpatrick in mix for title as Rahm leads
Rory McIlroy is well-placed for another Race to Dubai title after his 7-under 65 on Saturday left him three shots off the lead heading into the final round at the season-ending DP World Tour Championship. Jon Rahm holds a one-stroke lead after a bogey-free 65 put the Spaniard at 15-under 201 overall at Jumeirah Golf Estates as he seeks to win the event for a third time. The top-ranked McIlroy will battle US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick on Sunday for the Harry Vardon Trophy. Fitzpatrick can clinch what would be his first Race to Dubai title if he wins Sunday and McIlroy finishes below second. A second-place finish would also be good enough for Fitzpatrick if McIlroy finishes lower than seventh.
In the Times editorial today, it says that the Philippines is better off joining conferences and suggests that if President Marcos hopes to lead the Philippines into becoming an upper middle-income country like Indonesia, he would need to work with the community of nations. Read the full version on print, subscribe to its digital edition or listen to the Voice of the Times. Rigoberto Tiglao, Fr. Ranhilio Aquino and Francisco Tatad are the columnists on the front page. Tiglao says US Vice President Kamala Harris' visit to Palawan will raise tensions in Taiwan and the South China Sea; Aquino on the end of time; and Tatad on what BBM can tell Harris.
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This is Pete Llevares reporting.